


Comet's Light

by neelie415



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Space AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-06-20
Updated: 2014-07-17
Packaged: 2018-02-05 10:15:12
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,822
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1814914
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neelie415/pseuds/neelie415
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Space AU. Dean Winchester was on a mission to gather information on the sudden appearance of a cometlike object. When it turns out that this comet is no hunk of ice but a breathing being that claims to be an angel on his way to what Dean views as a celestial barbecue, things get interesting.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. A Naked Visitor Arrives

“Son of a bitch. Are you getting this?” Dean frowned at the screen in front of him. It was his first solo time out in a while and he was still getting readjusted to all of the equipment. 

“Yeah, I got it.” Sam’s voice sounded tinny over the radio link. “It looks like a solar flare’s interfering with the circuitry. Try reversing the polarity of your shields. It should minimize the effect of the wave.”

“Yeah, thanks for that, Sam,” Dean said, rolling his eyes. “I already knew that.” Dean flipped the switch and watched as the screen changed from a glaring red to a cool blue. The small bubble of unease in his chest deflated a few notches. “Looks like that cleared it up.”

“Okay, good. Now finish scanning that comet and start powering everything down for the night. I’ll start crunching the numbers for tomorrow.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Dean cut the connection to Sam back on the Lawrence and returned his attention to the instruments in front of him. He was strapped into the pilot’s chair of a Class B research vessel. The Impala was a speedy schooner fitted with some of the most advanced research equipment the Earth’s navy had. Dean was out on assignment from Admiral Singer himself to examine the flight path of a comet that had suddenly shown up on their radars the day before. It was nearly impossible for a piece of space junk like a comet to slip through their scanners and get so close to Earth’s orbit. The Lawrence had gone on high alert when the bright white blip had appeared off their starboard bow and it had been go, go, go since then.

“And you go this way…” Dean sang quietly as he flipped the switch for autopilot. Almost immediately, the cockpit darkened and Dean got a clearer view of the endless black through the Impala’s thick front windows. Off to the left, still thousands of light years away, he could see the bright white light that was the comet, hurtling toward him. He found it mildly unsettling. With one last look, Dean unbuckled himself and left through the hatchway in the low gravity, entering his cabin through the short connecting hallway. The room was tiny, with just enough space for a bed to fold out from the wall and a footlocker. The rest of the ship consisted of two more rooms just like his, a small galley, a community head, and engineering. The Impala was designed for a crew of three but could be piloted by as few as one.

Dean stripped out of his jumpsuit until he was just in boxer briefs and t-shirt and stuffed the suit into the footlocker. Years of working in light gravity had taught him that boxers should be left down on Earth. His stomach rumbled and Dean decided to get some grub before strapping in for the night.

The so called “food” onboard the Impala depressed him. It was really nothing more than bland tasting paste in bland colored tubes. The Lawrence was a big enough starship that you could get a decent burger if you knew the right guy, or even a good grilled cheese if the cook liked you enough. But those things took up space and schooners were built with simplicity and speed in mind so the crew had to suffer. Dean was nursing his way through some a tube that claimed it contained ‘500 calories worth of protein’ (“Whatever that means,” grumbled Dean) when warning alarms began howling.

“Shit!” Dean threw the paste down and raced as fast as he could back to the cockpit. Every sensor the Impala has was going ballistic. She was trying to tell Dean that there was a breathable atmosphere outside and none inside, that the Earth had somehow switch the direction of its rotation, that Jupiter was only two hundred kilometers away… “What the hell?” Dean practically threw himself into the chair and tried to make sense of what was happening. Emergency power had been activated and everything was lit with the red emergency lights. 

“D-D-Dean!” Sam’s voice crackled through the radio. “Can—hear--?”

“Sam! I don’t know what’s going on!” Dean punched a button, trying to kill the emergency power. “Sammy, can you hear me?!” Panic was starting to well up inside his chest again. The ship now detected an extreme rise in temperature in the galley.  
“—I—interf—comet—you,” Sam’s voice only came through in patches. 

The side panel exploded out in a shower of sparks and Dean threw up his hands to shield his eyes from the blast. When he put them down, a thin layer of frost covered every inch of the cockpit. “What the hell?” Dean said again looking around frantically. All of the sensors had gone black and the only light came from the red emergency bulbs blinking slowly above him. The ship was silent except for the comforting hum of the air recycler. At least environmental is still working, Dean thought. He couldn’t hear the sound of the engines though.

He sat in the silence, doing his best to control his breathing and calm down. Deep breath in, deep breath out. The Lawrence was close enough that he would be rescued in a couple of hours. All he had to do was stay calm and maybe figure out how to get some of the systems back on line. Dean was quite pleased with his attempt at relaxation (his heart no longer felt like it was going to escape through his throat) when he heard a sound that made his blood freeze. 

Someone coughed in the galley.

Dean had a fleeting thought about his pistol which was currently sitting happily in his cabin back on the Lawrence. He felt naked and vulnerable. Hell, he almost was naked. The minimal protection that his jumpsuit would have given him from whatever the hell was currently hacking in the galley seemed like an impenetrable suit of armor at the moment. He took one last deep breath and decided that he wasn’t going to panic. He was trained in hand-to-hand combat for fuck’s sake. From the sound of it, whoever was in the galley wasn’t going to put up much of a fight.

“Fuck this shit.” Dean growled. He crept through the hatchway and edged along the hallway toward the galley. A quick peek around the corner showed a lot of scorch marks covering the walls and ceiling. He entered the galley more furious than nervous.

At first glance, the galley was empty. The table was knocked slightly off kilter and sure, the majority of the floor, walls and ceiling were scorched, but other than that the only thing out of place was a rather large mound of black…Dean wasn’t sure what that was. But then it moved. And coughed. The coughing quickly turned into a groan and Dean realized that the black shape was a naked man lying on his stomach, covered head to foot in grime. What Dean had thought were scorch marks were two enormous, jet black wings that erupted from the naked man’s back and spread out across the entire galley, curling upward where they met the walls and almost meeting on the ceiling. Some of the feathers looked longer than Dean’s forearm.

“What the—“ at the sound of Dean’s voice the man tried to stand up quickly. The wings flapped and flailed, trying to fold themselves in in a space that was at least two times too small. Dean had to dive back into the hallway to avoid getting buffeted by the wings.

“Please,” a gravelly voice said from the galley. “Help me.” 

The fury inside Dean melted away at the pain and desperation in that voice. When he chanced another look into the galley, he saw that the man had given up on standing and instead sat back with his legs stretched out in front of him. He had somehow managed to fold one wing behind him and the other lay half curled around him. His eyes were squeezed shut and he was breathing unevenly. Dean also noticed the dark puddle that was slowly pooling on the floor.

“Help me, please,” the man pleaded again. Dean cautiously inched back into the galley. His attention was drawn to the pair of wings. When he got close enough he saw that they weren’t plain black like he had previously thought. Even with the red emergency lights pulsing every few seconds he could see the rainbow of color each feather shone with. When the man groaned the feathers all shivered.

“Just…hang on a sec.” There was a first aid kit in the footlocker back in his cabin. Dean pivoted on his heel so fast he almost knocked himself over in the low gravity. He managed to make it to his cabin in back with the kit and a jumpsuit in what he thought was record time. He hesitated on the other side of the bulkhead just long enough for the injured man to start coughing again. It really sounded like he was going to hack up a lung soon. “Alright, where are you hurt?”

“It’s my wing,” the man rasped. The left wing curled in front of him twitched when he spoke.

“Here, put this on,” Dean said, tossing the jumpsuit. It hit the man (Is he even a human? Thought Dean) in the chest and fell to the floor. He ignored the suit and stared intently at Dean. Dean had the sudden feeling that he was being x-rayed and became acutely aware that he was wearing very little clothing and the person in front of him was, in fact, buck ass nude. “Or not,” Dean muttered, grateful for the incessant red lighting. It hid the blush that was threatening to creep into his cheeks. He busied himself with rummaging through the first aid kit for bandages. All the while he could feel the piercing stare from the…man. Satisfied that he had a sufficient supply of bandages, Dean squatted down and inched forward to inspect the damaged wing. Its dark coloring made it difficult to pinpoint the exact location of where the blood was flowing from. 

“If you could just…stop the bleeding…I can fix the rest.”

“I don’t know, man. It looks like it’s broken.” Before he could stop himself Dean reached out to touch the wing. The long, secondary feathers were stiffer than he had anticipated but smoother than silk. Without thinking, Dean ran his hand up into the fluffier coverts that grew along the upper edge of the wing. They were softer than anything he had ever come in contact with. He barely registered the shudder that went through them. Dean would have been perfectly happy with running his hands through those feathers like an idiot all day if he hadn’t found the sticky, wet feathers. “Alright, I got it,” he said the distract himself. He grabbed a handful of bandages and pressed them to the spot. “You feeling alright?” He glanced at his patient. 

He no longer looked like he was in pain. In fact, if Dean hadn’t known better, it looked like the guy was in the middle of an enjoyable situation. Dean eye’s darted a little farther south. An extremely enjoyable situation. The blood staining the bandages in Dean’s hand begged to differ, however. 

“Dude, focus!” Dean snapped. He didn’t need a—whatever this guy was—losing himself all over the galley. 

The guy’s eyes opened slowly. His pupils were dilated. “My wings are very sensitive.”

“Yeah, well,” Dean turned back to the task at hand, “I think I’ve stopped most of the bleeding.” He pressed harder against the wound until he felt something pop. “Hey I think I just set the bone—“

The winged man collapsed into a heap on the floor, unconscious. At the same time, the emergency system shut off and Dean heard all of the ship’s systems reset. The normal LEDs came back on, replacing the blinking red lights. Dean blinked in surprise but finished tying up the bandage. He stood up and took a few steps back, taking in the sight on the floor now that any likely danger had passed.

He looked like an honest to God angel. Not like one of those ugly cherub things, but an actual, real life angel. Dean took a moment to appreciate the lean muscle and dark hair of the man sprawled across the galley floor. When he had passed out, his wings splayed out in either direction again. They were enormous—at least ten feet on either side. In the new lighting, Dean could see more colors hidden in the black. 

“What the fuck?” Dean said conversationally, as if a naked man with giant black wings materializing in the middle of the Impala was an everyday occurrence. At the sound of his voice, the subject in question stirred.

He sat up and blinked slowly, looking around as if he was seeing everything for the first time. His gaze settled on Dean. He had the bluest eyes Dean had ever seen. “Thank you,” he said in his gruff voice.

“Uh, sure? Now can you tell me what the hell you’re doing on my ship?! And who exactly are you?” Dean had meant to ask what are you, but he figured that sounded a little rude so the ‘who’ would have to do for now.

“My name is Castiel.”

“Castiel, huh? And what the hell was with all of the sensor readings and frost and,” he waved his arms around to indicate the entire room, “this?”

“My apologies. I was summoned by my brother and was flying a little faster than was responsible. By the time I noticed your ship it was too late for me to turn and I crashed.”

“When you say fly, do you mean literally fly?” Dean mimed flapping wings. 

“Of course,” Castiel said, cocking his head to the side. His eyes narrowed in confusion. “What else would I mean?”

Dean stared at Castiel and swore quietly. “I’ll be damned. You can fly through space? Without any protection or anything? Well obviously,” he said determinedly keeping his gaze anywhere but Castiel’s nakedness. He didn’t need to get distracted again. 

“My kind are able to survive in the black, yes…I’m sorry what are you called?” 

“Dean.”

“Yes, Dean. My kind are able to survive in the black. But I can see that my nakedness upsets you. My apologies.” He grabbed the jumpsuit that Dean had thrown at him and stood up. “I fear my wings will not fit into this.” He stepped into the leg holes and zipped the suit up to his waist. 

“That’ll work for now I guess,” Dean groused. He opened his mouth to ask who Castiel’s “kind” were when he heard the radio chirp from the cockpit. 

“Dean! Dean can you read me?” Sam’s voice was filled with concern.

“Hold that thought,” Dean told Castiel. “Just…stay here, will ya?” Castiel just stared at him so Dean took that as an agreement. He left the galley and headed for the cockpit. 

“Dean, you’d better answer me!” Dean could tell by the panic in Sam’s voice that they had no idea what the hell had just happened either.

Dean flipped the switch. “Relax, Sammy. I’m here.”

“Fucking hell, Dean,” Sam said in relief. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah I’m good. Hey, listen. You’re not going to believe what happened.” Dean began to tell Sam about Castiel. He had only gotten to the short circuiting of the Impala’s main systems when he heard a thump behind him. He swiveled around to see Castiel half stuck in the hatchway. His wings wouldn’t fit through the door. “Hang on a second, Sam.” He turned the radio off. “What the hell are you doing?”

Castiel completely ignored Dean. Instead, he glared at the hatchway as if blaming it for being too small. “Dean, we need to talk.”

“Okay, no stop.” Dean’s temper flared up. “Just who do you think you are? You short out my instruments, crash into my ship bleeding, begging to be fixed up and now you’re telling me that ‘we need to talk’? No, I don’t think so. I’m asking the questions on this ship.” 

Castiel blinked. “Very well,” he said impassively. He stopped trying to extricate his wings from the hatchway and cocked his head to the side, obviously waiting for Dean to start questioning him. 

“So how did you—wait, just like that? You stop?”

“Of course. You are distressed and my observations of humanity have taught me that listening and politely answering questions in a predicament like this helps to ease tensions. I’m grateful for you bandaging my wing and I do not want to upset you, therefore I will answer your questions.”

“Okay,” Dean said, elongating each syllable to give himself time to piece together his thoughts. He settled for the obvious. “What are you?” 

“I’m an Enochian,” Castiel stated, as if it was the most obvious thing.

“An Enochian.”

“Yes, an Enochian.”

Dean made a face and stared up at the ceiling. “Why does that sound so familiar?”

“Humans call us angels.”

WOAH. That popped Dean’s thought bubble. “Hold on a second, you’re an angel?! Like flying around heaven, fluffy white clouds, angel?”

“No, Dean,” Castiel sounded confused. “I told you. I’m an Enochian.” 

Dean’s mouth fell open. He felt like he should say something but his mind was still working through angel. “So, angels are aliens?!” He could feel the tunnel vision coming on. 

“In a way, yes. My kin and I found your planet millennia ago and your ancestors thought us godlike beings. We were only on Earth for a few weeks and we were worked into your mythology. Since then, a few of my brothers have been tasked with watching over your planet.”

“Uh…huh. Well you did a bang up job on that one.” 

The blue eyed angel blinked. “We were given orders not to interfere, Dean. We were told just to watch.”

“But why? If you can literally fly through space buck ass nude and not die, clearly you’re some powerful shit and you could’ve helped with a lot.”

“I don’t need to explain our decisions to you!” Castiel’s whole demeanor darkened and Dean suddenly felt an electric charge in the air. The angel’s wings shuddered. “You are just a human.” He growled the last word out and Dean felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. 

Okay this guy is intense. He had to admit though, the roughness of the voice was definitely working in his favor. “Okay whatever,” Dean said, putting his hands up in surrender. “I don’t wanna start any intergalactic wars or anything.” 

Castiel stared unblinkingly at him for several long seconds before nodding shortly. His stare was so intense that Dean could almost feel the hole that was being drilled into his forehead. After nearly a minute of the most intense staring contest he’d ever been a part of, he asked “So…what were you doing flying so fast?” He probably shouldn’t have pried, what with the other man nearly going ape shit a few seconds ago, but his curiosity had gotten hold of him. To his surprise, Castiel looked a little sheepish and…Is that a blush?! 

“My brothers called me in for a special ceremony,” he said, averting his gaze to stare at the ceiling instead. 

“A ceremony?” repeated Dean.

“Yes. I am to be, uh, rewarded for my work.” He was still resolutely staring at the ceiling.

Dean’s face split into a grin. “A reward, huh? What, are they gonna give you a whole case of beer and a barbecue to celebrate?” 

“Something like that,” Castiel said. 

The Impala’s sensors beeped. Dean’s head whipped around to stare at the screens. “That can’t be right,” he muttered, staring at the huge white blob that had suddenly appeared a few million kilometers away.

“Oh no,” said the angel. 

“Oh no?” Green eyes swiveled around to stare at blue. “Why ‘oh no?’ Is that…is that another one of you?!”

Castiel closed his eyes and huffed a sigh. “That would be my brother.”

“Your brother?”

“Yes, Michael. I’m running late and he’s…a little upset.”

“So he’s coming here?”

“No, Dean,” Castiel said, voice dripping with sarcasm. “He’s flying off to Ganymede. Now can you please help me get unstuck from this thing?”

“Yeah, hold on a sec.” Dean took a step closer to the angel. He reminded him of the smell right before an intense thunderstorm broke out back on Earth. He ignored the swooping sensation he felt in his stomach at their close proximity and studied the way Castiel had wedged himself in the opening. “I think you’re just going to have to back up.” 

“Don’t you think I already tried that?” Castiel snapped.

Dean chuckled and raised his hands in defense. “Alright, Cas relax.” 

The angel ruffled his wings. “You shortened my name. Why?”

“Because Castiel is a mouthful. Cas sounds much better.” Dean smiled a little at Cas’s raised eyebrow. “Okay, I think I know what we have to do. Can you shift your hips to the side a little? I gotta go grab something.” Cas obliged. Dean did his best to ignore the heat that was coming off from the angel’s exposed chest when he squeezed through the tiny space. But he may have let a hand trail briefly over Cas’ chest before he was on the other side. 

“Please hurry,” Cas pleaded. “I don’t want my brother to see me like this.”

Dean carefully stepped around the black feather trailing on the floor and ducked between the two wings. He jogged as fast as he could through the low gravity back to his cabin and opened the footlocker. After a second’s thought Dean decided to pull on the jumpsuit—being ambushed in his whitey-tighties by an angel again did not sound like fun. Once the suit was zipped up to his waist he rummaged through the locker looking for…now where was it? He didn’t think that he had taken it off of the Impala since Benny had stopped working with him. Those had been some good times though…  
Focus, Dean. 

His hand closed around the cylindrical bottle. “Gotcha,” Dean said triumphantly. The bottle was still about half full. “Alright, Cas,” he said when he was back at the cockpit. “I’ll have you out of there in just a bit.” 

“Good, because Michael is almost here.” 

Dean popped the top on the tube of lube and squirted some in his hand. “Now, don’t panic or anything. I’m gonna put some of this on you so we can slide you out.” 

Cas tried to crane his neck to see what Dean was talking about. “Put what on me? Will it hurt?”

“Oh relax, you big baby.” Without further ado, Dean began lubing up Cas’s side and shoulders. The angel jumped when Dean’s fingers first grazed his side. Dean did his best to keep his breathing even and avoid touching Cas’s wings again even though his fingers were itching to do just that. After a few seconds, Cas relaxed and if Dean wasn’t mistaken, sighed contentedly. Once Dean was satisfied that Cas was sufficiently slippery he set the bottle down. “Okay I’m going to pull now.” He grabbed hold of Cas’s arm and pulled. 

The next thing he knew, he was lying on the floor with a mess of black feathers in his face and another man lying on his chest. 

“Well,” Cas said. His mouth was so close that his breath ghosted along Dean’s lips. “At least I’m not stuck anymore.” 

Dean had time to grunt in agreement before the power cut out again. The scarlet emergency lights flared up again and the warning klaxon rang out. 

“Fuck!” Dean unceremoniously shoved Cas aside and practically flew back into the cockpit. Sure enough, the sensors were reading the same things outside like before Cas made his debut. 

“That would be Michael,” the angel said from the floor. 

“Well can you, I don’t know, tell him that he won’t fit on my ship?” Dean said desperately. One angel wedged in a doorway was bad enough. There was no way that two would be good for the health of his ship. Or his health for that matter. Something heavy hit the Impala so hard that Dean was thrown back onto the control panel. Almost immediately all of his sensors died.

“Too late,” he heard Cas say.


	2. Round Two

“Hello, Castiel,” Dean heard a cool voice say. 

Sonovabitch. He heard Cas rumble a response in the galley. The emergency lights flickered off along with the rest of the Impala’s warning system and the LEDs came back on. After two seconds deliberation, Dean switched the radio back on. “Sam, you there?”

“Dean! Where the hell have you been? I’ve been trying to hail you for ages!”

“Yeah, sorry, Sam I got a little…uh…distracted.”

“Okay, cut the shit, Dean. What is going on?” He emphasized each word so much that Dean could practically see them forming individual sentences. 

“Um, I don’t really have time to talk about it, but there’s a real big chance that I’m gonna need some back up here.” 

“Dammit, Dean,” Sam sighed. “We changed course to intercept you after the first anomalies so we’ll be there soon.”

“Thanks, Sammy. You’re the best.”

“You cannot be serious,” the voice Dean was pretty sure belonged to Michael bellowed. 

“Dean, who was that?” Sam’s voice had a forced calm sound to it. 

“Just get over here!” Dean turned the radio off again. He ran a hand over his face and sighed. Naturally, during his first solo missions since the accident, two aliens would show up. He was so not getting paid enough for this. Although Castiel was certainly attractive…Dean was fairly certain he wouldn’t go there with an alien. Pretty sure anyway…

“He has been very kind brother. Do not do this!” Cas sounded distressed. And he was getting closer. Before Dean could blink there were two angels stuck trying to get into the cockpit. Cas was glaring daggers at the new naked guy who was wedged in the hatchway with him. 

Where Cas was dark and muscular, the new angel was blonde and lean. His wings were, if it was possible, even bigger than Cas’ a white so blinding that Dean had to look away. They made Cas’s wings look blacker than the void outside. He had piercing eyes just like Cas, but his were a lighter shade of blue. Dean could feel the power rolling off him in waves. The guy looked livid. 

“Castiel,” Michael commanded. “Get out of my way so I can show this bug what happens when he interferes.” 

“Woah, buddy,” Dean put his hands up in front of his chest to defend himself. “I didn’t interfere in anything.” 

Michael snorted derisively and tried pulling himself through but only managed to get wedged in closer to Cas. 

“Michael, please,” said Cas tiredly. “You’re only going to succeed in getting us stuck even worse.” He wheezed out the last word when Michael elbowed him in the gut. 

“The only reason I haven’t vaporized you yet is because my brother here seems to like you.” Michael stopped struggling and seemed to have decided to just stare Dean to death. 

“Uh, thanks?” Dean’s eyebrows shot up and he darted a glance at Castiel. The angel was carefully inspecting one of his feathers that had drifted across his line of sight but…was that a faint blush? “Look,” Dean said, trying to focus. “I can get you out if you just stop freaking out. Just don’t…don’t vaporize me, deal?” 

Michael stared at him for a solid (and awkward) minute before nodding. Dean let out a breath that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. He glanced down looking for the bottle of lube and…son of a bitch. He could see the bottle floating slightly above the floor where he left it. The only problem was that it was only the other side of a seriously pissed off, naked angel who had decided not to blow him to smithereens. For now anyway. 

“Uh, I’ve just got to uh…” he started to crouch down to reach between Michael’s ankles. “The thing is just back here.” Michael became so still he might as well have been a statue. The hairs on the back of Dean’s neck were standing up by the time he successfully grabbed the lube and stood up again without coming in contact with Michael. “So…” he said, drawing the word into multiple syllables. 

“Dean,” Cas said.

Okay good idea. Let’s lube up the guy I’ve already lubed up once. 

“So, round two, huh?” Dean grinned cheekily before beginning the process. He did his best to avoid touching Michael when he could. He tried to focus on just getting the two angels unstuck but his mind refused to cooperate. Instead he kept thinking about what it would feel like to run his hands through Cas’s dark hair and kiss those full pink lips. Cas hummed again when Dean’s hands ran across his shoulder and came dangerously close to those beautiful wings again. Then Dean’s mind would jump back to Benny and he would feel the pang of loss all over again. And then, of course, there was the thought of the Lawrence in the middle of a fast burn on its way to back him up. What would they do with the two Enochians? 

“What is this substance used for?” Cas asked curiously. 

Dean felt his face get hot. Damn it. “For situations like this,” he said evasively. He gave Cas a sharp shove in the chest and the two angels slide back into the corridor with a squeak. 

“It would appear as though you humans are more resourceful than I thought,” Michael said. “Thank you for your assistance.”

“Yeah thanks for not turning me to du—“

“Castiel,” Michael said sternly, talking over Dean like he wasn’t even there. “It’s time to go. Anna is waiting for you.”

Anna? Who’s Anna? Dean glanced sadly at the now empty bottle of lubricant. Looks like I’m gonna have to do some shopping. Although, if Castiel was involved with this Anna chick, Dean probably didn’t need to worry about stocking up again. The thought made him oddly depressed. 

“Michael, I told you,” Cas was saying tiredly. Dean snapped back to paying attention. “I want to stay here with Dean. He’s interesting.” 

Michael glared at his brother. “After all of the planning and all of your hard work, you want to skip out because you think that this…this human is more interesting than your celebration? What about Anna? What am I supposed to tell her?”

“It’s not like I’m abandoning her. I just want to see what humanity has done now that they have reached the stars. The last time I was among them, they were pumping enough toxins into their atmosphere that it’s a miracle they survived this long.”

“Tread carefully, Castiel,” Michael said quietly. “You might lose everything. Humans are childish barbarians.”

Dean had been watching the exchange like a tennis match, green eyes flying between the two brothers, but now he spoke up angrily. “Wait just a minute here. We are not barbarians, okay?” Both angels turned to stare at him. “I mean, okay we do kinda suck when it comes to a lot of things but hey, who doesn’t get offended when the other guy tries to steal your toys?” Cas cocked his head to the side and looked confused. Michael looked irritated. Okay bad example. “At least we stopped trying to blow each other up a century ago! Now all differences are settled in sneaky, underhanded assassinations…”

“This is your argument to convince us that humanity is not childish and violent?” Michael wanted to know.

“Okay, yeah. We kinda suck,” Dean conceded. “But who are you to tell Cas what to do, huh? It sounds to me like he doesn’t really want your backyard barbecue or this chick, Anna.” 

Michael flapped his wings with a noise that sounded like a crack of thunder. Dean had to fight not to cover his ears. “And who do you think you are, Dean Winchester, to question my authority? I was smiting greater men than you centuries before you were even a thought.” 

Okay, now might be a good time to backpedal, Winchester. Smiting? Fuck. For once in his life, Dean stayed silent. 

“I’ll just be a little late,” Cas said, stepping in front of Dean and shielding him a little from Michael’s furious gaze. “I’m curious.”

Michael’s gaze flickered between the bandage on Cas’s wing, to Dean, and took in the spaceship around them like it was the first time he had even noticed it. In the end he let out a long sigh through his nose. He sounded more annoyed than angry now. “Fine. But don’t keep us waiting long.” He flapped his wings once and then he vanished. 

Dean looked around, heart beating frantically, to figure out where the angel had disappeared to. He was nearly blinded when he glanced out the window and saw a comet streaming by. What a bastard. 

“Dean,” Cas said from the corridor quietly. 

“What?” Green eyes found blue.

“Do you mind that I want to stay?” He shifted uncertainly. “I’ll try not to get in the way.”

Did he mind? “Who’s Anna? And what’s this celebration that Michael was going on about?” He asked instead. 

Castiel sighed. “Anna is what you would call…my betrothed. I was put on assignment over a planet in the next system over. I ensured that a certain event took place and my reward was to be the chance to mate with Anna.” 

“What the fuck? So you make sure that things go the way your douche bag brother wants and then you get to bang some chick? Does she even know you?” 

“Dean, I assure you everything is consensual. Procreation is very important amongst my people and carefully orchestrated. It doesn’t happen very often and when it does, the two parties involved are carefully selected. Anna had to pass her own tests. When we both completed our assignments and passed everything, we were informed of each other. I’ve known Anna for centuries. She is a good soldier.” 

Dean’s mouth had fallen open at some point during the angel’s speech and he still hadn’t bothered to shut it. Tests and soldiers just to get a little action? “If she’s such a good soldier, why aren’t you hauling ass back to her?” 

Cas smiled faintly. “Well I was, but then I ran into you. I want to see what kind of place creates such kind people,” he said, reaching up and running his fingers over the bandage Dean had left on his wing. 

Dean snorted. “You should know that not everyone is as kind as me,” he said sarcastically. “A warship is on its way here as we speak. I told them I might need backup because I thought that Michael was going to kill me. They probably won’t be too happy when they get here.”

“If they are going to be a problem for you I can get rid of them.” 

“Woah, woah, woah, when you say get rid of them do you mean like…blowing them up or something?!” 

“Not if you don’t want me to,” Cas said, squinting like he was confused again. 

“Fuck, Cas,” said Dean, pinching the bridge of his nose. Apparently Enochians took things very literally. “You can’t go doing stuff like that.”

“Then I won’t.” 

Dean was really surprised by how quickly Cas seemed to want to please him. It made him wonder if maybe he should think about stocking up again. He shook his head to chase those thoughts away for the moment. “Okay, what are we gonna do when the Lawrence shows up? You just gonna come right out and tell them about the angel thing? Because let me tell you, some people will not take kindly to finding out that one of the main parts of their faith is a bunch of douche bags with wings.” 

“Not all of us are like Michael,” Cas said but he didn’t seem too offended by it. “What would you suggest then?”

“Let’s just start off with a good old ‘I mean you no harm’ spiel, yeah?” 

 

“Alright.” Cas stared unblinkingly at Dean until the proximity alert chimed.

“Well,” Dean swallowed audibly and turned to flip the radio back on. Cas’s gaze was just so damn intense… “I guess we’re gonna find out how much shit Bobby Singer is going to flip when he gets here. And just wait until Sam meets you. He’s gonna want to know everything.”

“Who is Sam?”

“He’s my little brother. But ‘little’ is all relative. The kid shot passed me once he hit puberty.” 

“I see.” Dean could tell by the tone of his voice that Cas had no idea what he was talking about. 

Dean chuckled. “Hey Sam, you there?” He spoke into the radio.

“Yeah, I’m here,” Sam answered almost immediately. His voice had the weird tinny quality that happened regardless of what kind of radio you used. “Would you please tell me what’s going on? Do you still need the cavalry?” 

“Negative on that Sam, but let’s just say that I won’t be docking alone.”

Sam was silent. “Well shit,” he said after a very pregnant pause. 

“Yeah, it’s been all sorts of exciting. Am I good to dock?”

“What? Oh yeah, yeah you’re good Dean. I’ll send you the flight path now.” The Impala’s navigation controls chirped. “Just get here in one piece, alright?”

“You know me—“

“Hello, Sam,” Castiel said loudly. Dean whipped around and shot the angel an exasperated look. Cas shrugged.

Shit. 

“Who’s that?” Sam asked. 

“That would be the unexpected luggage on this trip, Sammy.”

“Is he—“

“Just wait until we get back on the Lawrence before you have your nerdgasm, okay Sam? You can ask a billion questions once you meet the guy.”

“Do you realize that this is the single most important—“

“Yeah, yeah,” Dean said, turning off the radio feed and cutting his brother off right in the middle of his rant. 

“Was that wise?” asked Castiel.

“He’ll get over it.” Dean sat down in the pilot’s chair and turned it to face him. “Okay, let’s set some ground rules here before I fly us home.”

Cas tucked his wings in close and gestured for Dean to continue. 

“None of this telling people that you can vaporize them, okay? Stuff like that isn’t natural and we want to make sure that you’re as unthreatening as possible, alright?” Cas continued staring at him. “You don’t…you know, actually want to blow us up, do you?”

“Of course not, Dean.”

Dean exhaled loudly. When he got back to the Lawrence he was going to sleep for a week. He zipped his jumpsuit up the rest of the way, encasing his whole body in the rubberlike material. “Okay then let’s do this.”

Cas frowned. “I like you better the other way.” 

Fuck. Dean swiveled around in the chair to face the control panel, battling the blush that was threatening to climb into his cheeks and the swoop he felt in his stomach. He distracted himself by adjusting the buckles and plugging the coordinates Sam had sent him into the ship’s flight computer. “Get ready to meet some more of humanity, Cas.”


	3. The Lawrence

The trip back to the Lawrence didn’t take as long as Dean had anticipated. It might have had something to do with the angel who was currently sitting cross-legged on the floor, asking about a million questions a minute—everything from “What was that thing on your chest?” (“It’s a tattoo, Cas.”) to “So humans can’t breathe out in the black, so you built these fragile little ships?” 

Fragile my ass.

His baby was built to withstand the fastest burn engines were capable of and then some. And then there was the Lawrence. The battleship was enormous. The two thousand people on her now were just a skeleton crew compared to the five thousand when she was fully prepared for battle. Who humans would be fighting besides other humans had been a purely philosophical question until now. Now they had proof that there was other intelligent life. Although the so called “other intelligent life” that was on the Impala with him was currently examining the empty tube of lubricant with almost painful reverence. Dean did his best not to crack up laughing. 

He received clearance for landing in the hangar a few minutes later. “Hey, you might want to go get strapped into something back there. This part isn’t as nice,” Dean said over his shoulder. He began prepping the ship for landing.

“I’ll be fine,” Cas assured him.

“Suit yourself.” Dean began the deceleration burn and grimaced when the increased gravity began crushing him into the pilot’s chair. This was his least favorite part about space. So much power was needed to fly through that slowing down enough to avoid becoming pudding was painful. It sure beat the alternative though. 

Twenty minutes later, Dean successfully touched down in the belly of the Lawrence with an enormous headache. He waited as the outer bay door shut and the air was cycled in. As soon as the environment was breathable he saw one of the inner doors open. He would recognize those two anywhere. Bobby and Sam were making a beeline straight for the Impala. 

“Well that was exciting,” Cas said dryly. He was still sitting in the same spot on the floor and looked distinctly unruffled. Seriously. Not a single one of his feathers looked out of place.  
Lucky.

Dean envied the Enochian’s resilience. It sure made their ability to fly through space with no protective gear or an oxygen supply seem more believable. 

“Oh, shut up. Listen, Sam and Bobby are on their way here. Bobby is in charge of this ship, okay? He’s Admiral which makes it his choice what’s going to happen to you.”

“I’m going to stay here with you,” he said flatly. 

Dean blinked. “Really? What if they try to lock you up or something?”

Cas actually snorted. “No human could do that to me.”

Oh. Right. Celestial being, extra super ass-kicking alien. “Okay, well play nice at least?” Dean asked. He felt like he had pulled it off without pleading too much. A smile tugged at the corners of Cas’s mouth so Dean took it as a victory. “Be prepared for the barrage of questions that my brother is going to have for you, though. That kid is ridiculous. C’mon.” He unstrapped himself from the chair and stood, a couple of his joints popping in the process. Ouch. 

“Is that supposed to happen?” Cas asked with concern. 

Dean just waved a hand. He edged passed Cas in the corridor and led the way to the exit. He keyed in the code on the panel next to the door and it slid open with a hydraulic hiss. “Sammy! Bobby!” He descended the steps with a smile on his face and arms wide for a hug, partially shielding Cas from view. 

Sam Winchester was nearly a head taller than his older brother and enveloped him in a hug strong enough that Dean’s back popped again. Sam laughed and thumped him on the back once before letting go. He was wearing a gray navy uniform that looked like it barely fit over his bulk. Dean watched his eyes go wide when he caught a glimpse of Cas. 

“Hey, old man,” Dean said, giving Bobby a quick hug too. Bobby Singer had essentially raised Sam and Dean. The navy was his life and he had raised both Sam and Dean to be navy too. They had celebrated with an expensive bottle of whiskey when Bobby had been promoted to admiral just under a year ago. Now he essentially ran the show. 

“I see you made a new friend,” Bobby said nodding towards Cas. Dean still wasn’t accustomed to seeing him in the admiral’s uniform. He looked good.

The angel was standing on the top step still with his wingspan fully extended, blue eyes glaring daggers at Sam. It looked like Sam had tried to touch his wings and Cas was having none of it. 

Huh, that’s weird. Cas had let Dean touch his wings…but then again the poor guy was practically passed out at that point. But his reaction to Dean’s touch…snap out of it!

“Woah, woah, woah! Sam, what did you do?” Dean rushed to stand between his brother and Castiel. 

“This fool tried to touch my wing,” Cas said. He sounded more offended than angry. Dean hoped that that was a good sign. 

“I’m sorry!” Sam said, making those puppy dog eyes that worked on everyone so easily, including Dean. He would be surprised if Cas could withstand their power. 

Cas folded his wings with a flourish. “Just don’t do it again.” He descended the stairs to stand beside Dean.

“So,” Dean said, drawing out the word in an attempt to cover up the awkwardness. “Sam, Bobby, this is Castiel.”

“This is, wow,” Sam said breathlessly. 

Bobby grunted a greeting. “Can we move this little show somewhere else? Like my office. I don’t want to start people panicking.” He turned on his heel and started to speed toward one of the elevators in the hangar. Luckily, the hangar itself was relatively empty except for them. Sam followed but he elected to walk backwards so he could grill Castiel.

“So, Castiel, what are you? I mean, if you don’t mind me asking, but I mean, woah.”

“You don’t have to answer him if you don’t want to,” Dean whispered out the side of his mouth as he started following. Cas stuck close to his side, wide blue eyes taking everything in. 

“Dean.”

“What, Sam?”

Sam pursed his lips and shook his head but then returned his attention to Castiel. “So, were you that comet we were looking into?”

“Not here, boy,” Bobby snapped. 

They stepped into and elevator and Bobby quickly typed in his key code and sealed the door. It was incredibly cramped in the usually airy lift. Cas’s wings were causing a lot of discomfort. Bobby and Sam were squashed up against the far wall and each other in an attempt to limit their contact with them as much as possible. Dean, on the other hand, was squished against Cas’s chest while the angel had his wings spread out to sort of encompass the two of them. He could feel the steady rise and fall of Castiel’s chest and the beat of his heart. It seemed to beat out a quicker tempo than Cas’s calm exterior would suggest. He was nervous. It made Dean nervous. 

They stood in awkward silence while they ascended, Sam staring at Castiel with and awed look on his face and Bobby with his arms crossed and eyes narrowed. Dean did his best not to touch any of Castiel’s feathers but occasionally his fingertips would brush against them. They were just as soft as the first time and Dean had to fight not to do it more often. Each time his fingers grazed them he felt Cas shiver and his heart sped up a bit. That little shiver made desire begin to pool deep in Dean’s stomach so he stopped before things could become even more awkward.  
The lift came to a stop at last and everybody clambered off into the stark white corridor. Bobby stepped forward to another panel which asked for authorization. He keyed in a code and set his palm on the scanner. After a second the door slide open with a hydraulic hiss and Bobby stepped into his cabin. 

As spaces on a ship went, it was pretty spacious. Being the head honcho certainly had its perks. He had a real wooden desk with a squishy armchair on his side and an uncomfortable looking metal chair sitting in front of it. There was a door off to the right that Dean knew led to Bobby’s sleeping quarters. The door slide shut with a hiss when they were all through. Bobby rummaged in a drawer in his desk before producing a bottle of whiskey and four glasses. 

“Alright, let’s do this,” the old man said, pouring each of them a glass. When he handed Cas his, the angel took it curiously and stared at the amber liquid before raising an eyebrow at Dean.

“You drink it,” Dean said, taking a much needed sip of his own whiskey. He sighed in relief at the burn and leaned against the desk.  
Cas sniffed it and wrinkled his nose before downing the glass in one go. He sputtered a bit but put his glass down on Bobby’s desk. “Alright, let’s do this,” he said, repeating Bobby. 

Bobby and Sam both asked Castiel the same questions that Dean had back on the Impala. They wanted to know what he was and what he had been doing when he crashed into Dean. Bobby however seemed more concerned about their ability to fly through space and Michael’s threat to vaporize Dean. Cas was patiently explaining that Enochians did not have quite the same needs as humans when the door chimed. 

“Come on in,” Bobby called, pressing a button. The door slid open and a woman with a clipboard and lab coat walked in.

“Shit, you called Meg?” Dean said.

“Well nice to you too, Deano,” the brunette said as she sashayed into the office. Her lips twisted into a smile when she took in Cas, wings and all.

“Sorry, Dean, but I needed a science officer,” Bobby growled. “You know the rules.” His lip was curled in dislike. Dean knew that Bobby wouldn’t have called Meg if the books hadn’t dictated it. Protocol was a science officer had to be present for documentation of any and all new discoveries while they were out in the black. It just pissed Dean off that Meg Masters had been the only one Bobby could scrounge up. 

“Well, well, well,” Meg said silkily. “What have we here?” She started to circle around Cas, making notes on her clipboard when Dean stepped in her way. “Move Dean, I’ve got a job to do.”

“Who are you?” Cas asked.

“The name’s Meg, but you can call me whatever you like.” Meg sidestepped around Dean and continued to jot stuff down on the clipboard. “And who are you?”

“I am Castiel.”

Meg practically purred. “That’s an interesting name. And what exactly are you.”

Cas glanced at Dean. “You have to tell her, Castiel,” Sam said unhappily. 

“Very well,” Cas sighed. “I’m an Enochian. Humans know us as angels.”

That stopped Meg scribbling down information. “Say what?” 

“You heard him,” said Bobby. “He says he’s an angel.”

Meg stared at Cas and Dean could tell that she was doing some very fast thinking. “We have to lock him down,” she said finally. “And head back to Earth. Now.” 

“What?” Sam and Dean yelled together.

“You can’t do that,” Bobby said loudly. “Not on my ship.”

“I’m issuing an Order 93, Admiral,” Meg said, sarcastically emphasizing Bobby’s rank. 

“What’s an Order 93?” asked Sam incredulously. 

“It means science officer has more authority than Admiral when it comes to scientific discoveries. And I would say that we have a pretty big one on our hands now, boys,” Meg put her hands on her hips and leered at Cas. 

“If you touch me I will flay you,” Cas growled. His eyes narrowed dangerously and his wings began to fan out.

“Oh, try me, baby,” Meg purred. 

“Woah, woah, just hold on a minute here,” Dean said, stepping between the two because damn. “Okay, no one is getting locked down and no one is getting flayed here, alright? Meg, what the hell are you locking Cas down for? He’s cooperating.” Cas snorted. “Right?” Dean scowled at the angel.

“I suppose so,” Cas growled. 

“See? He can just bunk down with me or something while we get this whole thing figured out, deal?” 

Meg huffed. “Fine. But he can’t leave your room, you hear? I don’t want him getting lose around the ship and freaking people the fuck out. Got it?” 

“Yeah, whatever.” 

“Alright, Masters, you’ve had your look,” said Bobby. “You can get the hell out of my office now.” 

Meg’s gaze traveled around the room before settling on Cas. “I’ll be by to visit you soon, big boy.” She scribbled down one final note before exiting with a bigger sway to her hips than when she first entered. 

“Bobby, what the hell?” Dean shouted as soon as the door slid shut. He was furious. Here all Cas wanted to do was see humanity and now he was being imprisoned. In Dean’s room…with him…but still. 

“I’m sorry boy, but I had to.” Bobby had the decency to look apologetic. “And now it looks like we’ll be going home.” He poured himself another drink. “I ever tell you how much I hate scientists?” 

Sam snorted. “So I guess we gotta do like she says?” 

“Yeah. It don’t mean we have to like it though,” Bobby answered glumly. “I’m sorry about this,” he apologized to Cas. 

The angel shrugged. It was a gesture so human that Dean had to shake his head to remind himself that there was an alien standing in front of him. “Well,” he said, finishing off the last of his whiskey. 

“I guess we’d better go get you all nice and comfy for the ride to Earth.” 

 

The size of Dean’s room was somewhere between his cabin back on the Impala and Bobby’s office. It was big enough for a bedroom, an actual bathroom (complete with shower) and a small sitting space. Cas was currently sitting glumly on the couch with his wings tucked in close behind him. He had just taken off his bandage and was staring at the blood on it with a look of disbelief. 

“What’s wrong?” Dean asked tentatively. He was sitting on the edge of his bed in the process of taking off his boots. He desperately wanted to change out of his jumpsuit and take a shower but something about stripping down in front of the angel had stopped him. 

“I should have healed by now,” Cas muttered. 

“What?”

“I should’ve healed,” he repeated, showing Dean the soaked bandage. “I’ve never even had to use bindings like this before.” 

“So what, your mojo’s gone or something?” 

Cas looked pained. “I can’t leave.”

Dean blinked at him a few times before responding. “Of course you can. You can just,” he snapped his fingers. “Blip out like Michael and be nothing but stardust, right?”

“I tried.” Cas looked scared. “I tried when that woman first showed up but…I can’t.” 

“Oh, Cas,” Dean left the bed to sit next to him on the couch.

“Dean, if I can’t heal myself and I can’t fly…” he broke off talking and took a deep, shuddering breath. “I think Michael must have done something before he left. I knew that he gave up too easily.”

“But I…I thought he said that he would be waiting for you. That that Anna chick would be waiting for you too? Why would he say that and then take away your juice?” 

“I don’t know, Dean,” Cas stared at Dean with wide blue eyes. He was so close that Dean could see his reflection in them. “I don’t know.” Cas let his forehead drop to Dean’s shoulder and he let out one long, loud, unhappy sigh.


	4. Some Alone Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For some reason this chapter was really difficult for me to write....sorry for the wait! Also sorry it's so short, the next one will be much longer!

“I wish we had like a deck of cards or something,” Dean chuckled. He was lying on his bed staring at the ceiling humming. He could just see Cas at the edge of his vision slouched bare chested in the same spot on the couch he had been in for the past three hours. He seemed perfectly comfortable with the jump suit only zipped up to his waist and his black wings splayed out haphazardly. Dean tried not to stare but his eyes kept finding their way back. He couldn’t explain the attraction, but all he wanted to do was spend the trip back to Earth running his fingers across those feathers and through the angel’s hair. 

“What could we do with a deck of cards?” 

“You’re kidding, right?” Dean sat up. “No I don’t suppose you are kidding.” He ran a hand through his hair. “It would help us pass the time.”

“You don’t have to stay in here with me, Dean,” Castiel said quietly. “I see that you can’t stand to look at me.” 

“What?!” Dean blurted before he could stop himself. 

Cas turned to look at him with those striking blue eyes. “I see you look at me and away just as quickly. If you would be more comfortable, I can spend the journey somewhere else.” He looked dejected. 

Dean didn’t think, he just acted. Next thing he knew, he was sitting on the couch next to Castiel gazing intently into his face. “No,” he said.

“No?”

“Cas I can’t keep my eyes off of you,” Dean murmured. He reached a hand out hesitantly before caressing a few of the angel’s feathers, marveling at the way the light changed color as it shone on them. “You’re beautiful.” He smiled softly at the soft shiver that ran across the wing. His heart was pumping a million miles a minute but the look of awe on Cas’s face gave him courage. 

“Dean.”

“Yeah, Cas?” 

“I knew exactly what I was doing,” Cas closed his eyes and sighed, “when I flew into your ship.” 

Dean stopped the progress he had been making toward the juncture of the wing and Cas’s back. “Really?”

“Really.” Cas opened his eyes again and gazed earnestly at Dean. “I had seen you piloting your ship and there was something about you that blew all thoughts of Anna right out of my head. I had to see you up close, had to talk to you. I don’t know why.” Cas had gotten progressively closer as he talked. By the time he was finished, their noses were almost touching. 

Dean cleared his throat. He continued stroking feathers until he reached the point where they erupted from Castiel’s back. Cas gasped and his pupils dilated. His hand flew up to the back of Dean’s head and he crushed their mouths together. Dean moaned and leaned in to the kiss. Cas’s lips were soft and warm. Dean licked his way hungrily into his mouth, eliciting a moan from the other man. He raised his hand to rub his thumb across the stubble that grew along Cas’s jawline. Kissing Castiel was effortless. Their bodies seemed to mold perfectly to each other and Dean could feel desire burning hot inside him. 

“Oh, now I know why you wanted to keep him.”

Cas jumped and broke off the kiss. Dean reluctantly opened his eyes and glared at the owner of the voice. “How did you even get in here, Meg? I definitely didn’t open the door for you.” The cabins on the Lawrence were all passcode protected. To enter you had to type in the code outside, or call in for the person inside to let you in. 

She waggled her fingers at him. “Secrets of being a scientist, Deano.”

“Why are you here?” asked Cas. Dean was pleased to see that his face was flushed and his breathing was ragged. 

“Well, I said I would check up on you. Don’t you remember? I can come back later if you want,” she leered. 

“I would prefer it if you didn’t return at all,” Cas replied coolly. 

“Well I’ve got a couple more questions for you and some tests I would like to run,” Meg responded evenly. She took a few more steps into the cabin and stared pointedly at where Dean’s hand was still cupping Cas’s face and raised an eyebrow at their obvious signs of arousal. “We can stay here awkwardly all day or I can get started.” 

“You can do your tests,” said Cas. He didn’t look happy as he slid a little away from Dean on the couch. 

Dean glared up at the ceiling, asking for patience. He let his hand fall away unhappily. “Just don’t do anything dangerous,” he warned. 

“Relax, Dean,” Meg put her palms out. “Okay? Can I look at your wings, Castiel?” she asked.

Dean was a little surprised that she had actually asked for permission first. Cas looked surprised as well but he nodded his consent. He moved his uninjured wing to the forefront and sat rigid. The science officer crossed the room and knelt down in front of the couch and reached out to touch the wing. Meg kept up a constant stream of chatter while she took what Dean thought of as an unreasonable amount of time examining practically every feather. (Okay, maybe more like ten but still). 

“You know, it’s a long way back to Earth. Are you really just going to sit in here doing nothing?” Meg asked. 

“Well since you’ve given us no choice—“ Dean began.

“I said Castiel here had to stay out of sight. Admiral Singer doesn’t want to start a panic amongst the crew that an angel is on board.” Finished examining the feathers for the moment, Meg rocked back on her heels and sat cross legged on the floor. “But Deano, you can gallivant around the ship to your heart’s content. And yet you’ve resigned yourself to being shut up in here for the next week. Why?” When Dean didn’t immediately respond she chuckled. “A solid week of angel banging. That oughtta go well.” 

Dean sneered. “What exactly is going to happen when we get back to Earth?” Cas wanted to know before Dean said something he regretted. 

“I have someone who is real interested in meeting you,” Meg answered evasively. “The big boss man.” 

“Who says I want to meet this ‘big boss man’?” 

“I don’t think you have much of a choice right now. You’ve lost your angel juice, haven’t you?” 

“How the hell could you possibly know that?” Dean demanded. He was on his feet and his hands were clenched into fists at his side. 

Meg rose smoothly to her feet. “This ain’t my first rodeo,” she said with a smirk. “I’ll catch you boys later,” she gave the two a lazy salute before exiting. 

Dean stared at the closed door. “What the hell does she mean?” He turned to Cas. “Hey,” he said softly and sat back down. Cas ‘s eyes were wide and his face was pale. He looked scared.

“Dean,” he rumbled. “I think she’s encountered one of my kind before.”

“Shit.”

“How else would she know?”

Dean licked his lips. “Do you…do you know of any angel who went missing or anything?” 

Cas gasped. “Lucifer.”

Dean couldn’t help it. He laughed. “Wait a minute, wait a minute. Like Lucifer, Lucifer? The devil? Satan? That guy?” 

“Lucifer is my brother, Dean. He went missing centuries ago. They tried covering it up with a story of him rebelling but they didn’t get it out quick enough. There were always rumors that something had happened to him…that something was keeping him from returning home to us.”

“So, what, you think Meg and this boss guy of hers have been keeping your brother captive for thousands of years? That doesn’t make any sense. Meg’s like, in her twenties or something.” Dean waved a hand dismissively. 

“I’m telling you, Dean,” Cas snapped. “She has some prior knowledge of Enochians. She knew which feathers not to touch.”

Dean rolled his eyes. “You know we have these things back on Earth,” he said sarcastically. “They’re called birds. And they have two wings, just like you. And if you touch them wrong—“

“Dean!” Cas practically bellowed. His eyes were burning with an intensity that shut Dean the fuck up real quick. “I need to speak with Admiral Singer.”

Dean raised his hands in defense and tried to ignore the way his heart was thumping painfully against his chest. Sonovabitch but the guy could be scary. “Okay, okay. I’ll send him a message.” Dean went over to the console beside his bed and keyed in a message to Bobby. It beeped when it was sent off. He glanced uncertainly at the angel seething on the couch and decided with a sigh that he might be better off staying over by the bed. He practically threw himself onto the sheets and suppressed a groan. The things he could be doing now if stupid Meg hadn’t busted in through the stupid door…


End file.
